Naver founder Lee Hae-jin returns to board, aims to drive AI growth
Naver founder Lee Hae-jin returned to chair the board at the South Korean internet giant on Wednesday, reclaiming a leadership role after eight years, with a renewed focus on driving AI innovation.
Lee's reinstatement as an internal director was approved at the general shareholders' meeting held Wednesday at the company's headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. It marked eight years since he resigned as chair in 2017 to steer Naver's global expansion in the untapped European and US markets, serving as global investment officer.
He stepped down from the GIO position and was elected chair of the board in a session of directors following the shareholders' meeting.
At the shareholders' meeting, CEO Choi Soo-yeon, who has been leading Naver since 2022, also secured another term at the helm.
Lee pledged to focus on driving AI innovation as a board member.
'Naver, which began in the internet era, was able to successfully enter the mobile landscape thanks to our passion for turning innovative technologies into essential services and our determination to compete against larger, better-funded companies in our own way,' said Lee at the meeting. 'As we face the AI era, Naver's core philosophy remains unchanged.'
Lee said that he will support and encourage Naver's young executives and engineers and pledged to secure opportunities amid heated global competition in AI.
'Naver has survived and thrived for 25 years despite competing against big tech companies like Google,' Lee told reporters after the meeting. 'It has always been challenging when it comes to search engines, video, short-form content and AI. But just as we expanded globally during the mobile transition, we will turn crises into opportunities with new initiatives.'
Lee also stressed the importance of diversity in AI and search services.
'It would be disappointing if the world relied on only one or two search services,' said Lee. 'Diversity must be preserved and in order to do that, there needs to be a variety of services."
'Some say the era of searching is fading, but I believe it is expanding and growing. In that sense, we will again establish the position we need,' he said, emphasizing that Naver's mission is to contribute to the diversity of the internet.
Lee also addressed Naver's potential partnership with global big tech firms in AI.
'We should collaborate where collaboration is necessary,' he said. 'We are planning and preparing various partnership models, including cooperation with Nvidia.'
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